Guns among items stolen in latest home burglaries

Residents again urged to keep all doors locked

But as police warn Lawrence residents about a rash of home invasions, reports of the crimes keep piling up.

Monday morning, Lawrence police reported two more overnight burglaries, including one in which two handguns were stolen.

One of the burglaries occurred between 11:30 p.m. Sunday and 7:50 a.m. Monday in the 500 block of North Wilma Way, said Lawrence Police Sgt. Trent McKinley. Two handguns, a .38 special revolver and a .380 semi-automatic, were stolen by a suspect from the first-floor living room area of the home, which is northwest of Peterson Road and Kasold Drive. The suspect reportedly entered the home through an unlocked rear door, McKinley said.

Police were also dispatched shortly before 7 a.m. Monday to a home in the 1100 block of Andover Street, after residents discovered several items, valued at over $3,000, missing from the home, which is northwest of Harvard Road and Monterey Way. The residents reported they left their garage door open and said they think that’s how the suspect or suspects gained entrance. Some of the residents were at home asleep at the time of the incident.

The incidents are just two of dozens of aggravated burglaries reported in the last three months; in some cases, sleeping residents awake to find the intruder in their homes.

“It is a priority right now. We have detectives that are assigned to the cases as well as working a coordinated effort with both evening and midnight shift patrols,” McKinley said.

A 39-year-old Lawrence man was arrested on June 9, but the burglaries continued once he was in custody.

Police began warning residents in June to make sure doors and windows were locked at night after several similar aggravated burglaries occurred in southwestern Lawrence.

Police are asking residents to keep an eye out for suspicious people in their neighborhoods late at night or early in the morning.

Officers are also advising people to routinely check to make sure all doors and windows are locked before they go to bed, especially sliding glass doors.

Garage doors also should be closed, and officers do advise people to leave on exterior lights, including porch lights, throughout the night, McKinley said.

What good is a gun in a safe? Wait a moment while I awaken, remember the key/combination, call ems, (oh call the worthless police). Did I leave my lights on so that the robber can see? Give me a break. Police are overrated. Never at the crime on time*

What good is a gun in a safe? Well, it keeps the gun in the possession of its lawfully registered owner instead of in the hands of the criminal who enters the house in the middle of the night. You're either for us or against us.

Put them in an under-bed safe. You can get models that have backlit keypads and take only a few seconds to open. If you don't have that much time to react to a surprise in the middle of the night, you probably should be reacting to it with a gun.

P. S. Keep and eye out for people of color, they are always the criminals (NOT!) Time to buy a gun people. Not build a police station. Law abiding expert marksman, beware petite crook you are endangering your life. Go find a job, wait, there are no jobs :(

"One of the burglaries occurred between 11:30 p.m. Sunday and 7:50 a.m. Monday in the 500 block of North Wilma Way, said Lawrence Police Sgt. Trent McKinley. Two handguns, a .38 special revolver and a .380 semi-automatic, were stolen by a suspect from the first-floor living room area of the home, which is northwest of Peterson Road and Kasold Drive. The suspect reportedly entered the home through an unlocked rear door, McKinley said."

This is why people should live in the safety and security of a gated community. What's that you say? Oh, never mind then.

The only strange people I have seen in my neighborhood are those pushy out of town solicitors who are pushing their home security systems. He kept saying how crime was going up in my neighborhood. Hmmmmm......

People who leave their doors unlocked are idiots. Buy good locks, and lock them. A dog, a good security system, and outdoor lighting help too. We have all of the above, plus a 950 pound.gun safe. If you don't want to become a victim you must be proactive. Sooner or later these aggravated burglaries will get someone killed, either the victims or the criminal. Think about it !!

if you insist on shooting at everything that scares ya in your house, please get a small caliber weapon so that your bullets don't go through the floors or walls and hurt or kill other people (no second hand lead please).

This story reminds me that there needs to be greater emphasis on gun safety and training. Even the usual weapons enthusiasts here are missing the obvious fact that a gun outside of a safe when nobody is home is protecting no one.

Keep your guns safe and secure when away from the home by locking them up. If you desire the protection of a firearm when at home, take the guns out of the safe at that time. Leaving guns lying around when not at home is irresponsible. Not to say the gun owner is responsible -- only the thief is responsible for the theft -- but that precautions are in order if you choose to make the decision to own weapons.

I hope they catch the thief and that they do so before something really tragic happens.

I would have no problem with gun safety and skills being taught in schools, with parental consent, of course. But bring it "back"? I don't recall a time when gun safety was taught in schools. Maybe it depends on the region of the country one was raised.

I am not surprised at the current crime spree. It was inevitable. The Police (if you care to call them that) priorities are to buy armoured cars, hand out traffic tickets and protect the downtown barber shops and bad BBQ restaurants at all costs. In the time I've lived here every neighbor in my block has been burgled at some point. The police have been called over a dozen times and nothing has ever been done. The responding officers freely admit that property crime is not and has never been a priority for LPD. If we could elect a city commision who cared about anything other their own crappy little downtown businesses so that they could replace our incompetant city manager who could in turn try and find somebody less like Barny Fife than Chief Khatib, maybe we could get one detective to handle property crimes (there are currently none). Yet, despite the fact that citizens of Lawrence get robbed everyday, the police think we should be more worried about terrorists than criminals. Before we throw good money after bad, lets defund the armored car, the new building and the assault rifles and get a few bicycles and some actual police to ride them. We need new management. Fire Khatib and Corliss!

Guns don't kill, people do. I have never heard of a gun just killing someone. It takes a person to do this. Gun laws will only take guns away from law abiding citizens. If we are lucky these punks will break into their last house someday!

Just a slight correction: Guns don't kill people, people with guns kill people ... or ... Guns don't kill people, but they sure make it easier.

There are currently laws that ban automatic weapons -- is this a violation of the right to own? Sorry, but some laws are clearly justifiable for the good of our society. Painting all gun laws with the same broad brush is as incorrect as painting all gun owners, criminal or otherwise, with the same broad brush.

I keep my guns locked in a heavy metal guage locker that is bolted to the studs in my wall. The locker also has 3 locks on it. I used to keep a pistol grip 12 guage pump shot gun loaded next to my bed but don't any more. It really never made me sleep any easier. One day I might get a hand gun for self defense in the house, but the rest of my shooters stay locked up. They mean too much to me to just leave them laying around unsecured. They have alot of sentimental value as they are hunting guns. I would never leave a gun unsecured around kids either, thats an accident waiting to happen.